The Key to Making Life Unique and Worthwhile by Jim Rohn

The key to making life really unique and worthwhile is to share. Sharing has a certain unique magic of its own. Here’s what I learned in sharing ideas. If you share an idea with ten different people, they get to hear it once, and you get to hear it ten times. So here’s part of self-interest for yourself, getting you even better prepared for the future. Share ideas. Share with your family, share with the people around you, share with other employees, share with your colleagues. Because, by sharing, two things happen. Here’s what we call it. I don’t know how to explain it, but I do know it happens. And I don’t know all about how it happens or why it happens, it just happens. When one person shares with another, two things happen. The audience could be transformed, and so could the speaker. If you share with someone else, they could be transformed. You may have dropped in at the right time. This may be their moment. They’ve got three numbers dialed into the lock already, and if you say it well and say it right you’ll be the fourth number that they can dial into the lock of their personal experience and the door will come open and there’s opportunity they never saw before. The person who hears could be transformed. But here’s what else is exciting. The person who speaks could be transformed. Guess what we’re all looking for… transformation for our new life. The new life tomorrow, the new life this month, the new life next year, the new life this year. The caterpillar one day says, “I think I was made for more than this crawling on the ground.” So the caterpillar climbs the tree, attaches himself to a leaf and spins the cocoon. Who knows what disciplined effort it takes to spin a cocoon. But something inside the caterpillar says, “I was designed for something more than being just a caterpillar.” And then when the cocoon is ready and it opens up, out comes a butterfly that flies away, maybe singing, “I believe I can fly! I believe I can touch the sky! I used to be a caterpillar on the ground, now I fly.” I’m asking you to go through such a metamorphosis. I’m asking you often to go through a period where you say, “New skills, new things are waiting for me,” and part of this will come if you’ll translate for other people what you feel in your heart and in your soul. As awkward as your language might be at first, don’t hesitate to do it. Here’s what sharing does… makes room for more. Key question: If the glass is full of water, can it hold any more? And the answer is yes. Yes, if you pour some out. So jot that down. If you want more, you’ve got to pour out what you’ve got, and then you have the opportunity to receive more. Now, unlike the glass that remains the same size when you pour some out, it’s not so in the consciousness of human beings. Your capacity will increase the more you share. You’ll get bigger and bigger and bigger. Now, why the self-interest wish to be bigger? Here’s why: to hold more of the next experience. Some people can’t hold much happiness because they’re too small, their thinking is too small, their activity is too small, they’re too small in their ability to share, they’re just too small. Can’t hold much. They’re too small. But the bigger you get, the more you will receive. When happiness is poured out, you’ll get more. When joy is poured out on the nation, you’ll get more. When bounty is poured out from the economy, you will get more, if you share what you’ve got and become bigger and bigger and bigger.

Children Learn What They Live by Dorothy Law Nolte

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn . . . If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight . . . If a child lives with fear, he learns to be apprehensive . . . If a child lives with pity, he learns to feel sorry for himself . . . If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy . . . If a child lives with jealousy, he learns to feel envy . . . If a child lives with shame, he learns to feel guilty ... BUT If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient . . . If a child lives with encouragement, he learns to be confident . . . If a child lives with praise, he learns to be appreciative . . . If a child lives with acceptance, he learns to love . . If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves.. If a child lives with honesty, he learns what truth is . . . If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice . . . If children live with recognition, they learn to have a goal. If children live with sharing, they learn to be generous. If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith in himself and those about him . . . If a child lives with friendliness, he learns the world is a nice place in which to live . . . Dorothy Law Nolte (Children Learn What They Live: Parenting to Inspire Values)

The Coaching Dilemma

(the old saying is always relevant “ For things to change, I must change first”) wife: "I am hiring a new coach to improve my game in golf starting this week." husband: "How much do you believe in yourself during the process of coaching?" wife: "Well, let's try and see how good he is." husband: "Hmm... perhaps, that is why you keep getting new coach." How much are you willing to invest yourself into the process of getting what you want? Are you playing your 100%? How much trust you invest in yourself determines the quality of results you will receive. What do you think?

Three Powerful Principles for Success by Brian Tracy

There are many similarities between business and war. In both cases, the victor is the one who uses superior strategy against his or her competition. There are three principles of military strategy you can apply to your work every single day. The first idea from the military is called the Principle of Maneuver. The principle of maneuver says that you should be clear about the goal, but be flexible about the process of achieving it. According to the Menninger Institute, this quality of flexibility is the most important single quality that you will require for success in times of rap id change. Be Open to Continuous Feedback A key peak performance quality for you is to “accept feedback and self-correct.” Peak performers are those who can take information from their environment and even if the information is contrary to all of their planning, they can accept the information, modify their plans, and continue moving forward. They are always open to new ideas and insights. Learn What You Need to Know The second military principle you can use is the Principle of Intelligence. This principle of intelligence means simply, “Get the facts!” The most important thing in business decision making is for you to get accurate information. Facts don’t lie. It is important that you get the real facts, not the assumed facts or the apparent facts or the obvious facts, or the hoped for facts, but the real, provable facts. Make Better Decisions Perhaps the key job of the executive is decision making. The quality of the decisions that you make will be in direct proportion to the amount of time that you take to gather timely and accurate information. The very best thing that you can do, if you have insufficient information, is to delay making a decision at all. Invest Your Resources Wisely The third military principle applied to strategic planning is the Principle of Economy of Force. Economy of force means that you expend only the resources necessary to achieve the objective and not more. It also means that you commit sufficient resources to achieve the objective once you have decided upon it. Since your own personal energy is all you really have to invest over the course of your lifetime, the military principle of economy says that you should be very selfish when deciding how you are going to use yourself. Keep asking yourself, “How important is this?” and more important, “How important is this to me?” Action Exercises Here are two ideas that you can apply immediately to be more strategic in your work and personal life. First, remain flexible when you are working towards your goal. In times of rapid change, all of your best ideas can be contradicted by new information. Be willing to try different things. Be open to new inputs and ideas. Second, get the facts! The more and better information you can acquire before you make a decision, the better your decision will be. The very best managers spend a good amount of time getting the real, provable facts before they take action. To your success.

How Did They Know?

Something In The Universe That Is Much Greater And Deeper Than Human Intelligence. The Elephant's Journey To Pay Respect, But How Did They Know? Lawrence Anthony, A Legend In South Africa And Author Of 3 Books Including The Bestseller The Elephant Whisperer, Bravely Rescued Wildlife And Rehabilitated Elephants All Over The Globe From Human Atrocities, Including The Courageous Rescue Of Baghdad Zoo Animals During Us Invasion In 2003. . On March 7, 2012 Lawrence Anthony Died. He Is Remembered And Missed By His Wife, 2 Sons, 2 Grandsons And Numerous Elephants. Two Days After His Passing, The Wild Elephants Showed Up At His Home Led By Two Large Matriarchs. Separate Wild Herds Arrived In Droves To Say Goodbye To Their Beloved Man-Friend. A Total Of 31 Elephants Had Patiently Walked Over 12 Miles To Get To His South African House. Witnessing This Spectacle, Humans Were Obviously In Awe Not Only Because Of The Supreme Intelligence And Precise Timing That These Elephants Sensed About Lawrence's Passing, But Also Because Of The Profound Memory And Emotion The Beloved Animals Evoked In Such An Organized Way: Walking Slowly - For Days - Making Their Way In A Solemn One-By-One Queue From Their Habitat To His House. Lawrence's Wife, Francoise, Was Especially Touched, Knowing That The Elephants Had Not Been To His House Prior To That Day For Well Over 3 Years! But Yet They Knew Where They Were Going. The Elephants Obviously Wanted To Pay Their Deep Respects, Honoring Their Friend Who'd Saved Their Lives - So Much Respect That They Stayed For 2 Days 2 Nights Without Eating Anything.. Then One Morning, They Left, Making Their Long Journey Back Home............

Building Long Term Relationships By Brian Tracy

Did you know that building and maintaining long-term selling relationships is the key behavior and skill of the top ten percent of the money earners in sales? If you could take everything we know about communications, put it all in a large pot, boil it and distill it down into its critical essence, it is about the importance of relationships in successful selling. Building and maintaining long-term selling relationships is the key behavior and skill of the top ten percent of the money earners in sales, in every field, selling every product and service. The Reason for Success Most of your success in life will depend on your ability to get along well with other people, and on the quality of your relationships. Psychologist Sidney Jourard, found that 85 percent of a person's happiness in life comes from happy interactions with other people. The reverse holds true as well: 85 percent of a person's unhappiness or problems in life comes from difficulties in getting along with others. Sell to Lots of People Anyone can sell to a few people, some of the time. But only the very best human relations experts can sell to a wide variety of people, and sell to them repeatedly. The only way that you can make the kind of big money that you are capable of is by selling more easily, and more often, to the prospects you talk to, and by having those prospects open doors to others through testimonials and referrals. All top salespeople build and maintain high quality business relationships with their customers and sell to them repeatedly year after year. Decide Emotionally, Justify Logically We are all sensitive to the quality of our relationships with other people. We are primarily emotional and we make most of our decisions on the basis of how we feel inside. We may carefully consider all of the logical and practical reasons why or why not with regard to buying a product or service, but in the final analysis we tend to go with our gut feeling. We listen to our inner voices. We obey the dictates of our hearts. We buy on the basis of how we feel about the relationship that we have with the other person. Where there is no relationship, there is no sale. Focus on the Key Variable Everything that you ever learned of value in the profession of selling, regarding your product or service, or personality, is only helpful to the degree to which it contributes to the building of high quality relationships with customers. Action Exercises Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action. First, become a relationship expert in sales. Focus first on the relationship, above all, and the sale will take care of itself. Second, take care of your relationships once you have built them. Never take them for granted. Tend to them as you would to a flower garden.

Your Date with Destiny by Chris Widener

Destiny. What a powerful word. And the great thing about it? Everyone has one! You have a destiny! Another great thing about destiny? We have a significant role in shaping our own destiny! In essence, you can choose your date with destiny - powerful! Your destiny is the dream that lies within you of your desired and preferred future. And the things that we choose each day are what lead us to that destiny: Our actions, our words, our attitudes, and our relationships. They all add up to develop and shape that date on which we will reach our destiny. Here are some thoughts to think about as you work on shaping your Date with Destiny: The Mental Question: Do you believe that you can achieve a life of abundance? The frank truth is that many people simply do not believe that they can achieve what lies in their heart. Success is for someone else, a better person, or a smarter person. This is not true and is perhaps the greatest obstacle we face on the journey to our destiny. If we are to achieve the abundance in life we must first believe we can, or face our own continual self-sabotage of what a college professor of mine called "stinkin'-thinkin.'" Here is the truth: It doesn't matter what your intelligence is. It doesn't matter what your current resources are. It doesn't matter what you currently earn. It doesn't matter what family you came from. Nothing in your current circumstances matters in whether or not you can achieve your destiny! Nothing! Now, your current state may make it a longer or harder journey than someone else, but the possibility is always there no matter what your current circumstances are. And that is the message we need to continually tell ourselves. "I can do it." Not "I can't do it." Clear vision. Do you have one of your destiny? Here are some questions to determine whether or not your vision is clear. Can you describe it in intricate detail? Can you "see" it? Can you "feel" it? Can you "hear" it? Here are a couple of illustrations. Perhaps you came from a dysfunctional family and your dream is to have great moments with your family. Let's start with a Thanksgiving meal. Can you see each person there? What are they wearing? Are they smiling? What is the conversation? Can you hear the laughter? Can you experience the joy? Can you smell the turkey? Can you see people hugging each other and saying "This was wonderful," as they leave? Another scenario: Your Company. Can you see the large building you are in? Can you see the workers? Can you feel the positive attitude they have as they carry out their work? Can you experience the excitement as you get the quarterly results? Can you see yourself handing out healthy bonuses that bring pleasant surprises to your employees? This is where it begins. A clear vision of your destiny. Consider your resources. Are you aware of the resources you will need in order to set your date with destiny? Do you know how you will go about getting them? What are your natural gifts and talents that you have? How can you best utilize them in achieving your destiny? What is your current level of resources? Money? Time? Emotional health? Help from others such as friends, family, employees or volunteers? What will be your needed future level of resources? And have you developed a plan to achieve this level? The last thing I would encourage you to do is fix a date in the future that you believe you could be living your destiny by. A real date. What this enables you to do is then begin to work backwards in setting goals to move you along the way, providing you with future points to strive for and an evaluation point to reflect upon. Here are the points again: Answer the mental question: Do I really believe? Develop a clear vision. Consider the resources needed. Set a date with destiny. Develop a plan to get there.

Always Remember to take your Vitamins ... by Pablo

Take your ...

Vitamin A for ACTION

Vitamin B for Belief

Vitamin C for Confidence

Vitamin D for Discipline

Vitamin E for Enthusiasm!!"

It was the best of times ...

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way.

Charles Dicken

A Creed To Live By Nancy Sims

Don't undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others.
It is because we are different that each of us is special.
Don't set your goals by what other people deem important.
Only you know what is best for you.
Don't take for granted the things closest to your heart.
Cling to them as you would your life, for without them life is meaningless.
Don't let your life slip through your fingers by living in the past or for the future.
By living your life one day at a time, you live all the days of your life.
Don't give up when you still have something to give.
Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying.
Don't be afraid to admit that you are less than perfect.
It is this fragile thread that binds us to each other.
Don't be afraid to encounter risks.
It is by taking chances that we learn how to be brave.
Don't shut love out of your life by saying it's impossible to find.
The quickest way to receive love is to give love.
The fastest way to lose love is to hold it too tightly; and the best way to keep love is to give it wings.
Don't dismiss your dreams.
To be without dreams is to be without hope; to be without hope is to be without purpose.
Don't run through life so fast that you forget not only where you've been, but also where you're going.
Life is not a race, but a journey to be savoured each step of the way.

Giving Up ...

Remember that guy that gave up?


Neither does no one else.

Twelve Rules for Building Self-Confidence by Alan Loy McGinnis

1. Focus on your potential instead of your limitations.
2. Determine to know the truth about yourself.
3. Distinguish between who you are and what you do.
4. Find something you like to do and do well, then do it over and over.
5. Replace self-criticism with regular, positive self-talk.
6. Replace fear of failure with clear pictures of yourself functioning successfully and happily.
7. Dare to be a little eccentric.
8. Make the best possible peace with your parents.
9. Determine to integrate the body and spirit.
10. Determine to live above neurotic guilt.
11. Cultivate people who help you grow.
12. Refuse to allow rejection to keep you from taking the initiative with people.

A good leader inspires others with confidence in him; a great leader inspires them with confidence in themselves.

Life is not a hit or miss proposition

"In all human affairs there are efforts, and there are results, and the strength of effort is the measure of the results." James Allen

Life is not a hit or miss proposition.

You do not 'kind of' succeed nor do you 'sort of' get things going. You do not 'just about' make it big or 'more or less' get it done. Almost, just about and not quite do not count. In life, you either make it, do it and have it - or you don't.

When it comes to commitment, you are either all in - or you are not in at all.
When it comes to intensity and effort, you either go all out - or you don't.
When it comes to determination and focus, you either go all the way - or you don't go at all.

When it comes to reaching your goals, you either make it big - or you miss the mark. You can have it all. You can do it all. You can live it all. Or become nothing at all.

What's it going to be?

Behavior, character and personality

Behavior, character and personality are distinct levels in the evolution of the human being. When people display nice behavior, we say they are presentable. At the next level, when they have character, they can accomplish something. At a further level, being endowed with ‘personality’, they can create something original.

Let us first examine behavior. Behavior is superficial and comes through training. It is a channel through which a man expresses himself. The energies for behavior come from the vital emotions, whereas the energies for character come from the mind. The vital energies are short-lived responses to a situation. The ordinary man who is popular with everyone behaves well, has polite manners and does not criticize anyone. He is very presentable in society. But if this is where his growth has stopped, he cannot accomplish anything in the ordinary sense of the word. He cannot found an institution or make a mark in his profession. One dare not sign over a power of attorney to him or entrust him with any valuables for safe-keeping while one travels. In a question of something involving a material commitment, he will not be reliable. Behavior can be good and presentable, but beyond that behavior does not go. A mere behavior, a mere education, a mere age or experience will not accomplish something on its own.

The vital impulses are short-lived. They know what they see. They can be trained and this training is used in situations where there is no stress on the person. The habits which are formed in the vital become its behavior. All habits that are received in the vital and organized at that level are only at the level of behavior, because the vital has no direction. It cannot remember how it behaved three days ago. If it needs to be polite in good company, it can be so, but the behavior is short-lived. If someone behaves like a friend today, he may be an enemy tomorrow.

When a person has developed character, he can accomplish something by himself. Character is organized in the mind. It has a memory and never forgets. When the essence of the vital experience which is behavior is received in the mind and organized well so that the mind accepts that as its central direction, then it becomes character.

A man with character fits into that level of society to which his character has risen. If he has a noble character or a weighty character, he may be a philanthropist or a CEO. If he has a character but his nature is small, he can organize and raise a family successfully. A person with character can establish his own business, raise a family, and accomplish a substantial work in the society. These are all things that many people have done. There are already a thousand businesses; one more will be established. A person with character can accomplish and do what has already been done before.

When the mind comes into play, it generally acts on an opinion or bases itself on an idea. It tries to understand and begins to think and organize itself. The vital does not think, it responds to the situation, but the mind listens to an idea. On the basis of this idea, the mind organizes its values. The mind gives its sanction to certain behaviors which it has accepted as right. This behavior then becomes a pattern. The essence of that pattern is based on respectability, on social values. The mental understanding is based on the idea that what is valuable must be respected. Once the mind accepts this, every behavior will be directed by that characteristic. If a mother teachers her child to be polite to his grandfather, the child does not know it should also be polite to his uncle. If the child’s mind, which is capable of understanding, receives the essence of this pattern of politeness towards elder relatives, the pattern becomes continuous and his mind accepts it as a general direction. Children should be polite to their elderly relatives. This one idea becomes a guide for all of his behavior, which becomes character. That is called self-direction. In other words, the behavior of the child, the emotional impulses, are guided by the mental understanding which has accepted the value of polite behaviour towards elder relatives.

A person with a mere behavior can follow instructions, but he cannot think on his own, whereas character comes from the mind and enables the person to carry out a task with self-direction. Without mind coming into the picture, character cannot be formed. The center of character is mind, while the center of behavior is the transient vital emotions. Character has greater energy than behavior because it is backed by thought and issues from a more central part of the being. Behavior shows itself in a short-lived individual situation, whereas character shows itself in all situations which the society has accepted and evolved. Character guides every behavior. If a man with character is ambitious, his ambition will be shown in everything he does.

What is personality? Character is necessary to achieve something in society, but when something has to be created anew, personality is needed. Where character may hesitate to attempt something completely new, personality will not. Personality can accomplish something original, whatever the field is.

Personality is deeper than character. It does not confine itself to an organized expression as character does. Character needs the support of the social and psychological milieu. Because mind is a narrow organism which functions on thought, it draws its values from the general level of thought in the society. Something in the person feels safe in that climate and then the mind understands, the heart is able to be enthused about that understanding and the body is able to work. Usually when mind has to think of something original, it begins to shake. Personality cannot be centered in the mind. It does not care whether anyone else has attempted a certain work before. It has the initiative to start a fresh work in a new field.

Personality does not require the extraneous support of the social sanction. After it has understood and the mind has consented, it has the imagination to give a mental emotion to that consent. Once the mind is able to visualize something in its own imagination, the heart does not hesitate to release its enthusiasm for the accomplishment of the work. The support for the work comes from the Being which is above the mind. If the mind is clear and the Being supports, it doesn’t need the support of the society. That is the difference between character and personality. Character is an efficient mental organism functioning within the social fabric of accomplished levels. Personality is an energy which comes from the Being, able to understand on its own, be enthusiastic on its own and be a trail blazer for the society. Whether the field is in literature, or scientific discovery or in industry or in founding a college, this is the basic difference between character and personality.

What are the requirements of character and personality? Character cannot include personality, but personality must include the capacities of character and not be limited by them. Character requires understanding, strength of will, perseverance, and energy. Ideas are potential, powerful and supported by the society. The capacity for the mind to act on an idea gives you character. All men of high character will have strong, good opinions. But the understanding of character is limited because it understands only what everyone else has understood.

Mind acts according to fixed habits and preferences. There are great men of very high character. Their preference is always for refined living and their habits are good habits. Their mental constructions are of a high level of accomplishment. But they are bound by their opinions.

What personality requires is pure understanding, independent of a second person. The general endowments of personality are: pure intelligence in the mind, warmth and expansiveness in the heart, dynamism in the vital, endurance and perseverance in the physical. If these things are there on their own, they will include all the capacities of character. For personality, the capacity of the mind to take an idea to an idealistic level, for the achievement of the ideal is where it differs from character. A man with personality will be open-minded. He won’t be bound by his opinions or have rigid preferences. He will prefer what is best at that moment and be willing to change his habits if necessary.

To sum up, the pure components of personality are:

1. In the mind -- presence of mind, clarity, understanding;

2. In the will -- steadiness and equality;

3. In the heart -- conservation, warmth, expansiveness and magnetism;

4. In the vital -- energy;

5. In the physical -- perseverance and endurance for work.

Sometimes personality degenerates into character, or character matures into personality in the same person. A person may have personality in administration, but not in politics. People who have founded banks, or colleges, or small institutions, or people who have decided to move away from their country to another country are people who have personality at that level. All people who are responsible to their families, to their children, to their parents, who live up to certain levels of accomplishment materially, who are just, fair, and ethical, have ethical characters, social characters, physical characters.

Generally character is understood to be something good. But it can be negative also. A smuggler has a character as well as a member of the Mafia. But his character does not express itself in a positive way. He knows how to organize people and how to be loyal to his group. He definitely has character. A person who has character will have people around him. A person of mere behavior will not attract followers.

People who say, "Tell me what I should do and I will do it" are at the level of behavior. They can run errands, they can obey people, they can eat what is served, but they cannot take care of others. People who say, "Give me this work and I will accomplish it and report back to you," have character at that level. Other people who say, "Let me examine this proposal and if my mind understands and approves, my emotions will be enthused and I can act on my own," have personality.

Behavior is the external appearance without being confirmed or supported by the mind and feelings. Character is what is supported by the mind and feelings. It is a behavior which is endorsed and directed by the mind. Personality is on its own. It is self-directed.

How To Be A Good Listener by ROGER DARLINGTON

First of all, recognise that listening has to be learned. We teach children to speak and adults to speak in public, but we don't teach listening - so it's hardly surprising that most of us are not very good at it.

Next, appreciate that listening takes time - but, as the Greek philosopher Epictetus put it: “God gave man two ears but only one mouth that he might hear twice as much as he speaks.”

Normally, listen while seated. This will show commitment and aid concentration.

If you expect the conversation to last some time and/or to be sensitive, isolate yourself. So, if you're in an office, have the door nearly but not totally closed (so that you have privacy but your intentions are not misunderstood), advise colleagues that you're not available, and switch off your mobile.

Compose yourself physically. So don't twist your legs around each other or cross your arms, but instead be loose and open.
Compose the space physically - if it is your space as opposed to someone else's office or a café. So try to have a quiet, welcoming space with fruit, flowers or pot pourri.

Now listen with an open mind and an open heart - free of preconceptions and prejudices.

To listen effectively, concentrate totally on the speaker and what is being said. Avoid the temptation to be preparing mentally an immediate reply.
Give visual encouragement to the speaker - such as facing the speaker, offering eye contact, and indulging in mild head nodding.
Give oral encouragement to the speaker - such as, in conversation, periodically using words like "yes", "I see", "I understand" or even just sounds like "mmm" or "ah".

Don't interrupt. Let the speaker tell the story in his/her own words and at his/her own pace.

Don't rush to fill a silence. Often a speaker will be more forthcoming or revealing if he/she is given a chance to compose his/her thoughts.
Beware of making judgements and instead ask open questions - so not "You must have hated that", but "How did you feel about that?"

If you want to be sure that you've understood a particular point, reflect it back to the speaker and check that this really is what he/she meant.

When you want to remember a detail - such as a name or meeting arrangements - repeat immediately and aloud whatever it is you wish to remember. Then, as soon as it is convenient, write it down.

If you're listening at a meeting or a conference, take notes. This will aid your concentration at the time and assist your recall after the event.
When someone says 'Can I talk to you sometime?' try to make the time immediately to have a conversation. If someone has a worry or a suggestion or just a query, the sooner one can address it, the better for them (and, if you have a relationship with that person such as parent, partner or manager, probably for you).

Finally - and perhaps ironically - the last lesson on effective listening is knowing when to stop listening. There are occasions when the wise and proper thing to do is not to listen. If a friend or colleague abuses your willingness to listen by taking an excessive amount of your time or taking time which is inappropriate, you need to say so, politely but firmly. If a colleague is simply using you to pass on negative gossip, you should explain that you're not in the business of running down colleagues or passing on tittle-tattle. If a colleague raises a work issue that should be taken up with that colleague's line manager or trade union, you should say so. If the issue raised involves a medical condition or pyschological problem, you should encourage the person concerned to seek professional help. You are a good listener - but you are not there to be 'dumped on' and you are certainly not a doctor or a psychotherapist.


“Let every man be swift to hear, and slow to speak” (James 1:19).

The end game of selling by Brian Tracy

In golf, there is a saying that, "You drive for show, but you putt for

dough." In selling, you prospect and present for show, but you overcome customer skepticism and gain commitment for dough. How would you rate your ability to answer objections and get the sale? This is the true test of how good you really are as a salesperson.

The True Test of Selling

This is perhaps the most stressful and challenging part of the sales process. It's where the rubber meets the road. It is your ability to answer the questions that the prospect puts to you and overcome his natural reluctance to make a commitment that wraps up the sales process. It is also the part of the sales process that salespeople dislike the most and which customers find the most stressful.

Plan It in Advance

The end game of selling must be carefully thought through and planned in advance so that you are thoroughly prepared to bring the sales conversation to its natural conclusion at the earliest and most appropriate moment. Fortunately, this is a skill, like riding a bicycle or typing with a typewriter, and you can learn it through study and practice.

Handling Objections Comes First

Handling objections and closing the sale are two different parts of the sales process but they are so close together that this chapter will discuss them as a single function. Just as there are reasons why people buy a product, there are reasons why they don't. Often answering an objection or removing an obstacle is the critical element in making the sale. You can answer the objection and close the sale simultaneously.

Make It a Reason to Buy

Objections can be turned into reasons for buying. Just as there is a primary reason for buying a product, a hot button, there is a primary objection that stops the person from buying it. If you can emphasize the one and remove the other, the sale falls together naturally.

Smaller Products Versus Larger Products

In selling smaller products or services, where you can prospect and make a complete presentation in the first meeting, your approach to closing will be different from that required if you are selling a larger product in a multi-call sale that stretches over several weeks or months.

Ask For the Order

In the shorter, smaller sale, the prospect knows everything necessary to make a buying decision at the end of your presentation. Your aim should be to answer any lingering questions and then ask for the order. In the larger sale, you may have to meet with the prospect several times before the prospect is in a position to make a buying decision. You will have to be more patient and persistent.

Action Exercises

Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action.

First, prepare yourself in advance for the endgame of selling by anticipating anything the customer might offer as a reason for not buying. Be ready.

Second, look for the hot button, the reason the customer will buy, and press it. Meanwhile, find out his major reason for not buying and remove it.

All you have to do is follow the system - It works!

Hi dear Mark

I really want to say thank you to you. After I attended your training course in AIA Alexandra, my career went into a new stage. And I found it's not only me but also a group of people in AIA got their MDRT last year. We all learnt some important things from you no matter big or small, they changed our life.

I attended 2012 MDRT annual meeting in Anaheim, USA. I met those achievers came from all over the world. This meeting really opened my mind and views. I got a lot of ideas from there. And it let me made my mind to become MDRT member every year. So far this year's target is still a bit slower than what I should achieve but I know I'll be there in the end of the year. I have the confident in my heart.

Another good news is I'll fly to Orlando on 12 July to attend Richard Bandler's NLP Practitioner course. This idea was also from you. I knew NLP 4 or 5 years ago, always thinking to attend one until you say why don't go for the founder course, he can't be there forever. Yes, you are right. So after that, attending Richard Bandler's NLP course become one of my most important goal. I am so happy I can make it come true soon.

This email is only one purpose - express my great appreciations to you.

Thank you very much my dear Mark

Best Regards

J

The Key to Happiness by Brian Tracy

Your ability to achieve your own happiness is the key measure of your success, of how well you are doing as a person.

You learn the key to happiness that has been the same through all of history. You learn how to dispel the two myths that may be holding you back and how to achieve more happiness in everything you do.

Dedicate Yourself to Your Best Talents

The key to happiness is this: dedicate yourself to the development of your natural talents and abilities by doing what you love to do, and doing it better and better in the service of a cause that is greater than yourself.

This is a big statement and a big commitment. Being happy requires that you define your life in your own terms and then throw your whole heart into living your life to the fullest. In a way, happiness requires that you be perfectly selfish in order to develop yourself to a point where you can be unselfish for the rest of your life.

Please Yourself First

In Edmond Rostand's play Cyrano de Bergerac, Cyrano is asked why he is so intensely individualistic and unconcerned with the opinions and judgments of others. He replies with these wonderful words: "I am what I am because early in life I decided that I would please at least myself in all things."

Your happiness likewise depends upon your ability to please at least yourself in all things. You can be happy only when you are living your life in the very best way possible. No one can define happiness for you. Only you know what makes you happy. Happiness is an inside job.

Your Happiness is Up to You

The biggest myth about happiness is when people say that it is not legitimate or correct for you to put your happiness ahead of everyone else's. Throughout my life, I've met people who have said that it is more important to make other people happy than it is to make yourself happy. This is nonsense.

The fact is that you can't give away to anyone else what you don't have for yourself. Just as you can't give money to the poor if you don't have any, you can't make someone else happy if you yourself are miserable.

The very best way to assure the happiness of others is to be happy yourself and then to share your happiness with them. Suffering and self-sacrifice merely depress and discourage other people. If you want to make others happy, start by living the kind of life and doing the kind of things that make you happy.

Action Exercises

Here are three steps you can take immediately to put these ideas into action.

First, define for yourself the activities that you really love and enjoy, at home and work, and then organize your life so you do more of them.

Second, believe in yourself and trust your own feelings. Then, please at least yourself in all things.

Third, determine what it is that you do that brings the most happiness to others and then organize your life so that you can do more of it.

To your success,

From Bill ...

Boileroom Bliss

Mark I want to thank you for your coaching.

I want to share my happiness today because of the " boiler room " project. What’s happened last Friday my agency office is really like the video environment (hot) busy until my next room agency people keep looking & ask is it the date line? why every body so busy here & there.

My sleeping agents get wake up & start working. Today another 6 more cases summiting in the morning yes yes yes Tgen we can work together to break 200 cases this Month

Thanks mark this is because of you

Activity, Activity, Activity ...

Hi Mark,

I just want to say my thanks to you. Many years ago when I was a new insurance agent, you have shared with our agency about effective dialing to secure appointments. And I have benefited from it for many years now. Now, I'm an Agency Leader, and have shared with my agents always the dialing skill I've learnt from you. Thank you very much.
You're the Best!

Michele

COT Success

Dear coach! 

I just want to THANK YOU for being part of my journey in achieving my COT 2011 and now to the next chapter TOT! The road to such achievement is never easy especially for a young girl like me.. haha! But with your guidance, we Made it! :) Thank you for being such a wonderful coach! :)

See you in April

Etak

MDRT Success

Hi Mark,

This is my personal kudos to you for your amazing motivation email that is so consistently a great motivation for me on a daily basis. I am not sure if you recall I drop u an email to express my frustration over my sales target last year.MDRT was such a distant. Yr word of advice have surely fuel me to be here today in USA, Anaheim MDRT 2012.

Personally, it is not just achieving the recognition but to be present right at the convention. Believe it or NOT, I have waited this very day to take a pic, at the spot where I can personally email u this picture.

Thanks a million and yes, I pray that GOD will bless you great health and wealth. I still need yr "daily bread" to keep me sustained.

Mathew

CHANGE BEGINS WITH CHOICE by Jim Rohn

Any day we wish; we can discipline ourselves to change it all. Any day we wish; we can open the book that will open our mind to new knowledge. Any day we wish; we can start a new activity. Any day we wish; we can start the process of life change. We can do it immediately, or next week, or next month, or next year. We can also do nothing. We can pretend rather than perform. And if the idea of having to change ourselves makes us uncomfortable, we can remain as we are. We can choose rest over labor, entertainment over education, delusion over truth, and doubt over confidence. The choices are ours to make. But while we curse the effect, we continue to nourish the cause. As Shakespeare uniquely observed, "The fault is not in the stars, but in ourselves." We created our circumstances by our past choices. We have both the ability and the responsibility to make better choices beginning today. Those who are in search of the good life do not need more answers or more time to think things over to reach better conclusions. They need the truth. They need the whole truth. And they need nothing but the truth. We cannot allow our errors in judgment, repeated every day, to lead us down the wrong path. We must keep coming back to those basics that make the biggest difference in how our life works out. And then we must make the very choices that will bring life, happiness and joy into our daily lives. And if I may be so bold to offer my last piece of advice for someone seeking and needing to make changes in their life -If you don't like how things are, change it! You're not a tree. You have the ability to totally transform every area in your life - and it all begins with your very own power of choice.

OSMOSIS THOUGHTS by Doug Firebaugh

They are called "Osmosis Thoughts."

What are they?

They are the thoughts you start thinking just by being around certain people....and by almost "Osmosis", you start being influenced by their thinking and words...and beliefs...

That can be good...or bad....

We have talked about the importance of your thoughts and how they drive your life (CLUE!!!!!!!)

But the question is...

Are they YOUR thoughts...or other's thoughts driving Your life?

If you have a great Thinking Pattern...positive and solution focused...odds are you were influenced by someone...and by osmosis you dared to think that way...

If you have a not so great thinking Pattern...negative and problem focused...odds are you were influenced to think that way as well....

Are you thinking "Phantom thoughts?"

If you are...make sure they contain Power and Passion, not Problems and Poison...

Your thinking TRULY drives your life...

Who is behind your steering wheel?

Make Motivation Last by Zig Ziglar

Is motivation something that gets you excited for the moment and lets you down the next day, or can it endure for a long time?

I see the impact of motivation in people's lives every day. I get many letters and phone calls from people who say motivation has completely changed their lives. Yet other people say that motivation has had little impact on them.

A study at Stanford University has provided the reason for the variance. According to the study, only 5 percent of the people who buy into a concept are able to implement it; the other 95 percent don't have the resources to do so. Those few words created as much excitement in me as any single sentence ever has, because they made something crystal clear: The books and tapes are the resources! That's why I get so many more letters from people who say that my books and tapes have changed their lives than I get from people who say that my speech changed their lives.

The next time you see an author who presents a philosophy or concept that you believe can enrich your life, I encourage you to take the following steps:

Check out the author's credentials and see whether he or she can document the results you hear being touted.

If the evidence is solid, buy the book or tapes.

Books and tapes give you the resources you need to implement the concepts. When you take those steps, you make certain that the motivation you feel at the moment can survive the day and impact your future over the long haul. People who are concerned about their futures take the necessary steps today in the form of growing, learning, studying, and planning for their futures. This process generates enthusiasm and excitement about their futures, so they take the necessary action to ensure those futures. People who aren't concerned about their futures because they don't think they have futures are the ones who take no action. They drift along, singing the old Doris Day song, "Que Sera, Sera," and they drift into their declining years without any excitement or, in most cases, without any resources to enjoy even the basics of life without depending on others.

It's interesting to note that these two groups of people live at the same time, possibly in the same area, and may work in the same job or profession. It's not the absence of opportunity but the absence of motivation that is the problem for the second group. If you think you have no future, let me suggest that having a future is a matter of choice. If you continue to read books and start setting specific goals, you are doing something about your future. Your excitement (motivation) grows, and from that point on, you can develop the actions that dramatically enrich your future.

Four Steps to Success! by Jim Rohn

Let me pass on to you these four simple steps to success:

Number one is good ideas. Be a collector of good ideas. My mentor taught me to keep a journal when I was twenty five years old. I've been doing it now all these years. They will be passed on to my children and my grandchildren. If you hear a good health idea, capture it, write it down. Don't trust your memory. Then on a cold wintry evening, go back through your journal, the ideas that changed your life, the ideas that saved your marriage, the ideas that bailed you out of bankruptcy, the ideas that helped you become successful, the ideas that made you millions. What a good review. Going back over the collection of ideas that you gathered over the years. So be a collector of good ideas for your business, for your relationships, for your future.

The next step to success is to have good plans. A good plan for the day, a good plan for the future, a good health plan, a good plan for your marriage. Building anything is like building a house, you need to have a plan. Now here is a good time management question: When should you start the day? Answer: As soon as you have it finished. It is like building a house, building a life. What if you just started laying bricks and somebody asks, "What are you building?" And you say, "I have no idea." See they would come and take you away to a safe place. So, don't start the house until you finish it. Now, is it possible to finish the house before you start it? Yes, but it would be foolish to start before you had it finished. Not a bad time management idea. Don't start the day until it is pretty well finished -- at least the outline of the day. Leave some room to improvise. Leave some room for extra strategies, but finish it before you start it.

And here is the next piece that is a little more challenging: Do not start the week until you have it finished. Lay it out, structure it, then put it to work. Then the next one is a little tougher yet; do not start the month until you have it finished.

And finally the big one, don't start the year until it is finished on paper. It's not a bad idea, toward the end of the year, to sit down with your family for the family structure plans, sit down in your business for the business plans, sit down with your financial advisor for your investments and map out the year... properties to buy, properties to sell, places to go with your family, lay out the year. I finally learned to do that. It was also helpful for my family to show them where they appeared on my calendar. You know I used to have my business things on there and I used to have my lectures and my seminars all laid out on my calendar, and guess what the children said, "Where are we on the game plan, please show us our names on the game plan." So you need to do it for your children, for your spouse, for your friends.

Now, here is the third step to success, and it can be really challenging. Learning to handle the passing of time. It takes time to build a career, it takes time to make changes, so give your project time, give your people time. If you're working with people, give them time to learn, grow, change, develop, produce. And here is the big one, give yourself time. It takes time to master something new. It takes time to make altered changes and refinement in philosophy as well as activity. Give yourself time to learn, time to get it, time to start some momentum, time to finally achieve. It is easy to be impatient with yourself. I remember when I first tried to learn to tie my shoes. The shoe strings, it seemed like it would take me forever. Finally I got it and it didn't take forever, but it seemed like for a while I'd never learn, I'd get it backwards; the bow goes up and down instead of across. How do I straighten that out? Finally I got it, it just took time.

Mama taught me a little bit about playing the piano. "Here is the left hand scale", she'd say. I got that, it was easy. Then she said, "Here is the right hand scale." I got that, that was easy. Now she said, "We are going to play both hands at the same time." I said, "Well, how can you do that?" Now one at a time was easy... but at the same time? Looking at this hand and looking at that hand, finally I got it. Finally I got where I could play the scales with both hands. Then I remember the day she said, "Now we are going to read the music and play with both hands." I thought, "You can't do all that." But you know, sure enough I'm looking at the music, looking at each hand, a little confused at first, but finally I mastered it. It took a little time to read the music and play with both hands. Then I remember the day she said, "Now we are going to watch the audience, read the music and play with both hands. I thought, "Now that is going too far!" How could you possibly do that? But see adding them one at a time and giving myself time to master one before we went to the next one; sure enough I got to where I could watch the audience, read the music and play with both hands. So the lesson here is: Give yourself time, you can become a better pro, you can better master the art of parenting, you can better master the art of managing time, conserving resources, working together as a partner. Give yourself time.

And here's the last one; learning to solve problems. Business problems, family problems, financial problems, emotional problems, etc. -- challenges for us all. Here's the best way to treat a problem: As an opportunity to grow. Change if you have to, modify if you must, discard an old philosophy that wasn't working well for a new one. The best phrase my mentor ever gave me was when he said, "Mr. Rohn if you will change, everything will change for you." Wow, I took that to heart, and sure enough the more I changed the more everything changed for me.

So learn to master good ideas, have good plans, handle the passing of time and solve problems, and you will be on your way to more success than you could ever imagine!

K.I.S.S. a book by Mark

Why are we all so afraid of the truth when we’re so often told the truth will set us free? How is it that as “intelligent” (and as you will later see I use that word very loosely) human beings at the head of the food chain we still feel its necessary to “be nice” rather than “be straight”.

How many times have you been asked by your loved ones “How do I look”? now the “correct” thing to say at this point is to tell them what they want to hear, something like you look great darling, because that’s what they are really asking, they do not want the truth. You may remember the line from the film “A Few Good Men” when the great Jack Nicholson roars under questioning from Tom Cruise “You can’t handle the truth” and how right he is. We can not handle the truth.

As children we are constantly told by our patents, our teachers and everyone else who can get a word in edgeways, “tell the truth”, “honesty is the best policy” and all that kind of stuff. So why in the previous scenario with our loved one when asked the question “how do I look” and you want to say “you look awful” but in fact you end up lying throughout your teeth and giving them what they want.

When asked our opinion by someone we care for, why can we not tell the truth, will this then not set us free, you know the answer, of course not, we are more likely to get in to trouble. But if we are to follow these wise words from our all knowing elders from days of old, the truth can only the right way, if only it could be that easy, you’re saying. Well why the hell not.

Life is very simple when you get down to basics and it’s to basics I wish to take you too now, bear with me. A long long long time ago we were not here, that is to say we had not yet crawled out from the primordial soup that helped to create us, now if you are one of those “god created man etc” types (far me it from me to argue with that one so early on in the book) then that’s cool also the concept is the same, either way it all happened a very very long time ago and things were a little different. If I may be so bold to paint a typical scenario it was probably some thing like this:

You woke up in a cave, you went outside to find something to kill (assuming it didn’t kill you first) then you ate it then you returned to you cave only to repeat the process a little later when the desire for food reared its ugly little head again. Is this too simplistic or are you getting the picture. Net result life was simple, really simple. And we all knew our place in the circle of life (did you see the Lion King, great film, just hated that Scar, little shit!) or so we thought.

I am sure in day s of old when your “mate” asked you how he (or she) looked in the new pelt you recently beat to death for them and as we had not yet become “civilized”, if you thought they resembled a wild boar dressed as a Neanderthal in drag you probably would have said so blissfully ignorant of committing some caveman faux pas because some smart arse git hadn't invented them yet.

At what point in our glorious rise to world dominance did we all agree to say its ok to lie when we’re being polite? What I am trying to say is when did we stop talking straight, when did we invent this thing this way we speak to each other were under the rules of basic human society we all agree to tell the truth but we no have a few sub-clauses or exceptions. Perhaps more importantly whom can we blame, because that’s something else we love to do, blame? Pass the buck, let somebody else shoulder the burden of responsibility ‘cause it’s all too much for me. No sir not my fault it was him sir, honest. Sound familiar? We’ll come back here later.

Enough of that, so we then “evolved” we got cell phones, digital stuff and Professional Financial Advisors and now, we really are in control, still got the old cave (can’t shake those basic instincts) but now we call it a condo. But at least we can sleep at night firmly assured that we are on top of the food chain, ain’t nobody gonna eat me no more, no sir, I do my hunter gathering in Tesco’s. Really?

Put you hand up right now if you would really love to say what you feel but never do, come on lets see those hands, I know I am not alone on this. There are zillions of people on this planet, who are, as we speak going through this dance we call civility, who would rather say when asked the question “how do I look darling” simply say “you look like shit darling”. But you know as well as I that just wont happen, will it?

We would rather blatantly lie to the one we promised to “always be truthful to” in this case because that’s the right thing to do. NO IT IS NOT! If you think that the dress she has just spent an entire months salary on looks terrible, surly if you love them as much as you say you do the its your place to tell them so, isn’t it? I mean that’s part of being there, to say the things that others feel they shouldn’t. But we still don’t. We say one thing we mean something else.

Lets go wandering for a while and have a little fun on the way…

Attitude ... by Mark

Honesty by Mark

Motivating Yourself - How Do You Look at Challenges?

If you are feeling unmotivated lately, you're not alone. Many people are having a harder time being self-motivated. Managers and team leaders have less time to motivate the people who work with them. Anxiety levels are high, tempers are short, and few people are as focused and productive as they want to be. There are many reasons to feel unmotivated right now. Economic uncertainty is high on the list. Layoffs, overstated earnings reports, industries in crisis, every day there are stories in the news that cause us worry.

Most of us relate to news about the economy based on our perspective as someone who is:

Employed, but uncertain about future job security.

Secure in your job, but feeling overworked.

Un-employed or under-employed.

Regardless of which category you fall in to, the current economic climate creates a very challenging time in which to try to stay motivated, but staying motivated is crucial to our personal job security. The employed can't afford to succumb to malaise. Most have to stay ahead of an ever-increasing workload in order to prove their value to their organizations. The un-employed and under-employed need to keep motivated in order to find steady work.

There are many things you can do to keep yourself motivated during uncertain times. One of the most important is to reframe your perceptions of the challenges we face.

Challenges as Opportunities

How many times have you heard this statement?: "Let's not think of this as a challenge. Let's consider it an opportunity." Sometimes you should view challenges as opportunities, but, if you are like me, you probably feel like you have had more "opportunities" in the past couple of years than you can stand. Most of the time, when you are right in the middle of it, a challenge feels like … well … a challenge, a pain in the neck, something to get through.

When this is the case, then go ahead and simply get through it. Don't listen to the excuses of that procrastinating (or critical) little voice in your head. Break the challenge into manageable pieces, find little ways to reward yourself as you complete each piece, and keep your perspective throughout.

When the challenge has passed look for two things: lessons learned and successes achieved.

Lessons Learned

When you don't meet a particular challenge in a way that makes you proud, ask yourself, "What can I learn from this that will help me grow?" For myself, I'm in a position of leadership in my professional association. Although I try to do my best, my performance isn't always stellar. My leadership gaffes, on occasion, have included dumping projects on people instead of delegating them, praising one person and inadvertently upsetting another, and failing to use all the resources available to me.

While I've tried to look at each of these situations to see what I can do to correct the problem, I've also tried to find the management lesson in each. Look for the lesson. It's a more motivating perspective than focusing on your short-comings and can help you rise to similar challenges more effectively in the future.

Successes Achieved

Sometimes you come through a challenge with a huge success. Other times the success seems insignificant, but it's a success nonetheless. When you achieve a success of any size, what do you do? If you are like most people, you ignore it. Big mistake!

To motivate yourself, you have to be willing to recognize yourself. In my book, Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works, an entire chapter is devoted to self-recognition. Self-recognition is a very powerful but under-used tool.

A few organizations do an excellent job of encouraging self-recognition. Some companies ask their people to do formal presentations showing off their successes. It's just one of the ways they are encouraged to recognize themselves.

If you are like most people, you don't have many formal opportunities for self-recognition. That doesn't mean you can't recognize yourself anyway. Tell others about your accomplishments. There is nothing wrong with announcing in your team meeting, "I'm happy to report I have finished my certification training," or telling a friend, "Wow, that was a difficult job interview, but I think I presented myself well."

Look for other, more subtle ways to recognize yourself. For instance, you can recognize your value and potential by providing yourself with opportunities to learn and grow. When your employer provides the training you want, don't you feel they are recognizing your value to the organization? You do the same thing when you invest in your own training.

Keep a journal of your accomplishments. If you are feeling particularly unmotivated, force yourself to note at least one success every day. It doesn't have to be huge. Every success is noteworthy. It might be nothing more than connecting with two people in your network or cleaning off your desk.

The important thing is that you note something. At the end of the week, go back and review what you have written. Forcing yourself to identify your successes is motivating. So is rereading past successes. They can build up your confidence when you need it most.

When reviewing a challenge that you have just completed, resist the urge to focus on what went wrong. Instead, look for the lessons learned and the successes achieved. You'll feel better prepared to take on the next "opportunity" that comes your way.

Tips for Motivating Yourself

Get a friend or colleague who will hold you accountable. If you know someone will be asking you about your progress, it can motivate you to have something to report.

Break tasks into manageable pieces. Big challenges can appear less daunting when you separate them into smaller tasks.

Do a little analysis. If there is a particular challenge that you are avoiding, see if you can't figure out what is holding you back. It might give you greater perspective on how to proceed. Just don't get caught by analysis paralysis!

Look for the lessons. When things don't go exactly as you planned, don't beat yourself up thinking what you should have done differently. Ask yourself what can learn from the experience, but remember to look forward, not backwards as you review your performance.

Reward yourself. As you complete each task, reward yourself. When you meet the challenge, think big!

Find some way to celebrate your success.

Crazy Ones ...

"Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones
who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them,
disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things.
They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are
crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

Apple Inc.

Digital Etiquette (Professionalism and Good Manners) by Mark

If Someone Sends You An Sms/Text Message – REPLY
If Someone Sends You An E-Mail – REPLY
If Someone Calls You – REPLY
If Someone Leaves You A Message – REPLY
Its takes only a few seconds to reply to any of the above and shows good character with integrity. Ignoring/refusing to reply (for what ever reason) or you just cant be bothered shows your true character to the person who sent you the message.
Ignorance In Any Language/Culture Is Still IGNORANCE
If You Want To Be A Professional With Integrity And Good Self Esteem Treat People They Way You Would Like Them To Treat You … You might be surprised at the outcome
IT’S CALLED THE ‘BEING A TRUE PROFESSIONAL’
Anything Less In NOT Acceptable

What Constitutes A Good Life? by Jim Rohn

The ultimate expression of life is not a paycheck. The ultimate expression of life is not a Mercedes. The ultimate expression of life is not a million dollars or a bank account or a home.

Here's the ultimate expression of life in my opinion, and that is living a good life. Here's what we must ask constantly, "What for me would be a good life?" And you have to keep going over and over the list.

A list including areas such as spirituality, economics, health, relationships and recreation. What would constitute a good life? I've got a short list.

1) Productivity. You won't be happy if you don't produce. The game of life is not rest. We must rest, but only long enough to gather strength to get back to productivity. What's the reason for the seasons and the seeds, the soil and the sunshine, the rain and the miracle of life? It's to see what you can do with it. To try your hand, other people have tried their hand; here's what they did. You try your hand to see what you can do. So part of life is productivity.

2) Good friends. Friendship is probably the greatest support system in the world. Don't deny yourself the time to develop this support system. Nothing can match it. It's extraordinary in its benefit. Friends are those wonderful people who know all about you and still like you.

A few years ago I lost one of my dearest friends. He died at age 53 - heart attack. David is gone, but he was one of my very special friends. I used to say of David that if I was stuck in a foreign jail somewhere accused unduly and if they would allow me one phone call, I would call David. Why? He would come and get me. That's a friend. Somebody who would come and get you.

Now we've all got casual friends. And if you called them they would say, "Hey, if you get back, call me we'll have a party." So you've got to have both, real friends and casual friends.

3) Your culture. Your language, your music, the ceremonies, the traditions, the dress. All of that is so vitally important that you must keep it alive. In fact it is the uniqueness of all of us that when blended together brings vitality, energy, power, influence, uniqueness and rightness to the world.

4) Spirituality. It helps to form the foundation of the family that builds the nation. And make sure you study, practice and teach. Don't be careless about the spiritual part of your nature; it's what makes us who we are, different from animal, dogs, cats, birds and mice. Spirituality.

5) Don't miss anything. My parents taught me not to miss anything. Don't miss the game. Don't miss the performance, don't miss the movie, don't miss the show, don't miss the dance. Go to everything you possibly can. Buy a ticket to everything you possibly can. Go see everything and experience all you possibly can. This has served me so well to this day.

Just before my father died at age 93 if you were to call him at 10:30 or 11:00 at night, he wouldn't be home. He was at the rodeo, he was watching the kids play softball, he was listening to the concert, he was at church, he was somewhere every night.

Live a vital life. Here's one of the reasons why. If you live well, you will earn well. If you live well it will show in your face, it will show in the texture of your voice. There will be something unique and magical about you if you live well. It will infuse not only your personal life but also your business life. And it will give you a vitality nothing else can give.

6) Your family and the inner circle. Invest in them and they'll invest in you. Inspire them and they'll inspire you. With your inner circle take care of the details. When my father was still alive, I used to call him when I traveled. He'd have breakfast most every morning with the farmers. Little place called The Decoy Inn out in the country where we lived in Southwest Idaho.

So Papa would go there and have breakfast and I'd call him just to give him a special day. Now if I was in Israel I'd have to get up in the middle of the night, but it only took five minutes, ten minutes. So I'd call Papa and they'd bring him the phone. I'd say, "Papa I'm in Israel." He'd say, "Israel! Son, how are things in Israel?" He'd talk real loud so everybody could hear - my son's calling me from Israel. I'd say, "Papa last night they gave me a reception on the rooftop underneath the stars overlooking the Mediterranean." He'd say, "Son, a reception on the rooftop underneath the stars overlooking the Mediterranean." Now everybody knows the story. It only took 5 - 10 minutes, but what a special day for my father, age 93.

If a father walks out of the house and he can still feel his daughter's kiss on his face all day, he's a powerful man. If a husband walks out of the house and he can still feel the imprint of his wife's arms around his body he's invincible all day. It's the special stuff with the inner circle that makes you strong and powerful and influential. So don't miss that opportunity.

Here's the greatest value. The prophet said, "There are many virtues and values, but here's the greatest, one person caring for another." There is no greater value than love. Better to live in a tent on the beach with someone you love than to live in a mansion by yourself. One person caring for another, that's one of life's greatest expressions. So make sure in your busy day to remember the true purpose and the reasons you do what you do. May you truly live the kind of life that will bring the fruit and rewards that you desire.

TODAY IS YESTERDAY'S TOMORROW by Jim Rohn

The problem with waiting until tomorrow is that when it finally arrives, it is called today. Today is yesterday's tomorrow. The question is what did we do with its opportunity? All too often we will waste tomorrow as we wasted yesterday, and as we are wasting today. All that could have been accomplished can easily elude us, despite our intentions,until we inevitably discover that the things that might have been have slipped from our embrace a single, unused day at a time.

Each of us must pause frequently to remind ourselves that the clock is ticking. The same clock that began to tick from the moment we drew our first breath will also someday cease.

Time is the great equalizer of all mankind. It has taken away the best and the worst of us without regard for either. Time offers opportunity but demands a sense of urgency.

When the game of life is finally over, there is no second chance to correct our errors. The clock that is ticking away the moments of our lives does not care about winners and losers. It does not care about who succeeds or who fails. It does not care about excuses, fairness or equality. The only essential issue is how we played the game.

Regardless of a person's current age, there is a sense of urgency that should drive them into action now - this very moment. We should be constantly aware of the value of each and every moment of our lives - moments that seem so insignificant that their loss often goes unnoticed.

We still have all the time we need. We still have lots of chances - lots of opportunities - lots of years to show what we can do. For most of us, there will be a tomorrow, a next week, a next month, and a next year. But unless we develop a sense of urgency, those brief windows of time will be sadly wasted, as were the weeks and months and years before them.
There isn't an endless supply!

So as you think of your dreams and goals of your future tomorrow, begin today to take those very important first steps to making them all come to life.